Heroes
by The Quarter-Blood Prince
Summary: The Olympus Institute and Legion Academy are rival schools, each dedicated to training the next generation of superheroes. However, when one is destroyed, their student bodies are forced to live alongside one another. From heated rivalries, budding romances and the dangerous world of vigilantism, comes a story of growing up- but more importantly, what it means to be a hero.
1. Prologue

No matter what happened, Annabeth was determined to keep her cool.

She'd been in Mr. Brunner's office hundreds of times before, but it felt colder this time, as if the room was just as nervous as they were about the meeting. The mahogany desk between them was bare. The jar of caramels and the Greek hero figurines had been removed for the sake of professionalism, and the only other "decorations" were the dusty, old bookshelves filled with leather-bound Latin textbooks. Even the weather seemed ominous. The clouds blocked most light, a reminder that summer vacation was over all too soon, and the future was uncertain.

Annabeth looked at Mr. Brunner The wrinkles in his face weren't like his usual smile lines, and his hands were clasped together under his chin. Maybe some small talk would help lighten the mood. If nothing else, it would be a nice distraction.

"I see you're in the wheelchair today." He looked up and blinked, as if a little surprised by the sudden break in the silence.

"Yes." he cleared his throat. "I didn't want to startle Miss Ramirez on her first visit to the Institute. Most people tend to be taken aback by my appearance." She wasn't sure what to say about that. He also seemed to think it was the end of the conversation. She went back to twiddling her thumbs and staring at the grey carpet.

After a few more minutes of nothing, she checked her watch. The time was 11:59 am. The meeting was supposed to start at noon, but they'd been waiting there for the past half hour. Where was this Ramirez girl? The answer came when the door suddenly opened and out came a Latina girl about Annabeth's age.

"Forgive me for making you wait," the girl apologized, "I was having a bit of trouble finding my way around the school."

"No apologies necessary, Miss Ramirez." Mr. Brunner responded, shaking her hand.

"Just call me Reyna." she sat down on the chair next to Annabeth. "Unfortunately, my mother wasn't available today, but I'll be sure to fill her in later."

"This young lady is Annabeth Chase." Chiron motioned to her. "One of my star pupils and the Student Body President. You two will be working together closely in the near future, and I expect that you'll get along swimmingly." The two shook hands.

"Delighted to meet you, Annabeth."

"Likewise." She took notice of how firm Reyna's grip was and how she lingered for just a second longer on the handshake before sitting down.

Reyna and Chiron officially began the meeting. They spent the next few hours discussing the assimilation of Legion Academy's students into the Olympus Institute. Annabeth tried her best to take notes, but her mind wavered. Call it ingroup bias, but there was just something she didn't trust about this girl.

For one thing, she had blades on her belt. They were sheathed in black, so they weren't immediately visible, but they were there. Who brings weapons to a meeting like this? Then again, Annabeth wasn't one to talk. Luke's old knife was in her backpack at that very moment, and she still slept with it next to her. Regardless, Reyna's appearance was the main thing that put her on edge.

Her eyes were dark brown with flecks of gold. They were daggers that darted across the room, as if searching for the next fresh kill. Her neck and forearms were covered in battle scars, but she wore them like birthmarks. She had sharp yet nonetheless attractive features.

In short, she was beautiful, but it was a dangerous kind of beauty. It was like how lightning illuminates the sky but can still strike someone dead in an instant. Annabeth wasn't scared of her, but she would be an idiot not to be wary of her.

After a few more minutes of thought, Reyna said something to her—a question. Just how long had she zoned out?

"I'm sorry," she almost murmured, "but could you repeat that?"

"Can you remind me what day Legion Academy is supposed to arrive?"

"Oh. Of course." She flipped through her notes hastily. Despite everything, she'd written down pretty much everything they'd talked about. The problem was that she didn't understand most of it. She'd decipher her own handwriting later. For now, she had to find where the hell that date was in this whole mess. So much for keeping her cool during her first impression.

"September 1st—exactly three weeks from now." She tried not to sound too relieved. She looked up to gauge Reyna's reaction, but she was talking to Chiron again.

Annabeth tried her best, but she didn't pay much attention for the rest of the meeting.


	2. Chapter 1

August 25th marked the beginning of the school year for the Olympus Institute: home to the world's next generation of superheroes and, more importantly, Percy Jackson's dirty laundry.

"Today's the big day." Sally smiled, loading the last of her son's belongings into the back of her old station wagon. "You excited?"

"Sure," he responded, not sure in the least, "To be honest, I'm not sure how I feel right now."

"Oh, that's just first day jitters." she ruffled his black hair a bit and hopped in the driver seat. "You'll feel better once you see all your friends again."

Percy wasn't sure whether or not to tell his mom that he didn't really have any friends. His best friend for the past five years had been his buddy Grover, but he'd graduated last May. Now he was Pan, defender of the wild and a rookie member of the Pantheon. Saving the world didn't exactly give him a lot of free time to write or call. Then there was Annabeth. He got in the car without saying anything else.

The rest of the drive was fairly uneventful. The view consisted of trees, trees and, surprisingly, more trees. They continued along the highway until they came to an exit that went deeper into the forest. Bright orange traffic cones seemed to bar the entrance, but Sally kept driving, and they began to part before her. Finally, they were in the thicket of the woods themselves, hidden from the flurry of cars that continued to scramble past. Truckers, commuters and tourists alike ignored the mother and son as they journeyed deeper into the forest.

Eventually, they came to a rusted gold gate with a pegasus symbol in the center. To the side of it was a security checkpoint, and a tall, muscular man stepped out. His face and hands were covered with bright blue eyes, and there were probably dozens more underneath his navy blue coveralls. He walked up to the car, and Sally rolled down her window.

"Morning, Argus." she greeted the guard. He said nothing but returned to his booth and pressed a button. The gates opened up with a loud creak, and they drove further. Percy looked back to see Argus waving at them, one of his many blue eyes blinking on his palm.

From this point on, the scenery began to change. The forest backed away from the edge of the road, and a meadow of bright green grass glistened with morning dew. Percy closed his eyes and listened to whispers, the songs of birds and nature spirits. The aroma of wild strawberries filled his lungs as he breathed in and out. He'd forgotten just how much this place felt like home.

"See, that's the spirit!" Sally patted his shoulder. "I bet you're feeling better already."

"Yeah," he admitted, albeit a little shocked by the break in tranquility, "Maybe this year won't be so bad." Even as he said it, though, he was afraid he may have jinxed himself.

When they finally gotten to the front of the school, there wasn't much to look at. Sure, the building itself was nice, but Percy didn't really care about architecture stuff. There weren't any other students around either. Probably because school didn't actually start for about an hour and a half. Percy and Sally were only here because they'd wanted to avoid the rush.

They got out of the car and opened up the trunk. Percy almost took a box, but a cool breeze hit his face and the box was levitating in the wind.

"We'll get that for you," a melodic voice assured, carrying the box away. Dozens of other packages were lifted out of the car and taken off, seemingly by the wind itself. Percy had forgotten about the Aurae. They were wind spirits who worked around the school. They were mostly invisible, but, if you squinted hard enough and tilted your head in just the right way, they seemed slightly less invisible.

Either way, they weren't much for talking, so Sally and Percy just sort of stood there until the trunk was empty. Even then, they waited to close it, just on the off chance that they might accidently decapitate one of the poor girls. Sally didn't need that kind of blood on her hands. Finally, after about five minutes, they decided it was probably safe.

"Oooh, I'm just gonna miss you so much." Sally pulled him in for one last hug. She clasped him by the shoulders. "Remember to call once in a while, okay? And try not to get into any fights. I don't want you—"

"Throwing my life away," he interrupted, "I know, Mom. I promise I'll stay out of trouble."

"Good." she kissed him on the cheek and got back in the car. "I'll see you at Christmas!"

He watched as she drove away, lingering there on the sidewalk long after her car had disappeared from view. He really hoped he could keep that promise.


End file.
